Stay The Course

This was our final day.  We took a long walk through the old city.  It was fairly quiet since it was Sabbath, but some of the Arab shops were open.  We spent some time in what would have been the Antonia Fortress.  We stood at “The Pavement” where Jesus allowed himself to be beaten for us.  Remember this is where much of Psalm 22, 69 & Isaiah 52/53 was fulfilled.  Most of the blood shed for us was shed there.  We’re told in Isaiah 52.14 “As many were astonied at thee; his visage was so marred more than any man, and his form more than the sons of men.”  We made our way through the Lions gate and walked down to the Kidron Valley.  As we crossed the Kidron, we came to Getsemene where Jesus allowed himself to be arrested.  We then went to the Pools of Bethesda (House Of Mercy) where the man who was impotent was healed in John 5.  We had a great Bible Study there.  We sang quite a while in St. Anne’s Church where the acoustics makes any of us sound good!  We then went to the top of the Mount Of Olives and had a great Bible Study about the return of our Lord.  Fantastic!  After a couple of hours of free time, we made our way to Golgotha and the tomb where Jesus was laid.  FYI - the tomb is still empty!  Tomorrow we fly home.  What a great tour, what a great group.  We are all ready to go home though and share all our experiences.  Maybe next year, you can go with us.  Maranatha!

The eastern wall from the Mount Of Olives.

Golgotha - 777 Meters above sea level.

Our group entering the empty tomb.